Kohjinsha Netbook Boasts Dual 10.1-inch Screens

I remember when I went to visit Japan a couple of years ago, the whole netbook thing hadn’t really caught on in North America yet. Even so, there were tons of ultraportables on sale in Akihabara, including some crazy compact tablet PCs from Kohjinsha. Well, they’ve done it again.
Now that everyone and their mother wants a netbook, it takes a lot more to differentiate yourself from the competition. Instead of increasing the horsepower or tossing in an integrated Wacom tablet, Kohjinsha has produced a netbook with twin displays. That’s right. You get dual displays in a netbook.
Interestingly, I’m not really sure if you can even call this thing a netbook in the traditional sense. Instead of a single screen, this Kohjinsha has a pair of 10.1-inch LCDs that pump out resolutions of up to 1366 x 768 pixels each. Instead of Intel Atom, it gets an AMD Athlon MV-40.
Going further, you can also expect a full four gigs of DDR2 RAM, a SATA hard drive, and Windows 7. The dual display thing happens with a sliding mechanism to hide the second screen when it’s time to hit the road.
As with all other Kohjinsha products, I don’t expect to see this in Canada or the US any time soon. If you must have it, I suggest you book a flight over to Tokyo (or find an importer).

Samsung Moment Android Smartphone Invades Sprint

Maybe the HTC Hero isn’t your cup of tea, but you still want to get in on some Google Android action with Sprint. Maybe you’d prefer to have a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for busting out those emails and text messages. If that’s the case, you may want to take a minute to consider the newly revealed Samsung Moment.
We once knew about this upcoming phone as the Samsung InstinctQ, but it seems that the Korean electronics giant has decided to drop that branding. The Samsung Moment, as you can imagine, comes equipped with Google Android, giving you access to the Android Market and more.
You like nice displays? You’ve got one here in the form of a 3.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen. That should be great for online videos, web surfing, and maybe even a game or three. Other highlights include the 800MHz processor, full QWERTY keyboard, and 3.2 megapixel camera.

Go Global with Samsung i350 Intrepid from Sprint

Clearly going after the same market currently occupied by all sorts of BlackBerry devices is the newly announced Samsung SPH-i350 Intrepid. This QWERTY-packing smartphone gets powered by Windows Mobile 6.5 and it’s being destined for the shelves of Sprint, sitting right alongside the Samsung Moment and HTC Hero.
Helping to attract the corporate market is the inclusion of quad-band GSM support for use on international networks. This way, you can take your Sprint phone and use it everywhere from London to Hong Kong. Naturally, the Samsung Intrepid also handles the 3G EV-DO Rev.A thing while at home with Sprint.
That may look like any old 2.5-inch QVGA display, but that’s actually a touchscreen in there. You also get the aforementioned QWERTY keyboard, as well as a 3.2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, Mobile Office, WiFi, Internet Explorer 6, and Adobe Flash Support. Access to the Windows Marketplace for Mobile rounds out the package.

Charge All Your Gadgets, Keep Them Organized

Trying to keep your gadgets organized when you are on the road can be quite the challenge, especially since you have so many chargers to go along with so many gadgets. The super-handy Charge4All Charge Folio seems to address this very concern perfectly, fitting everything into a package no bigger than a paperback book. You know, those things that came before the Kindle.
The Charge4All Charge Folio looks like one of those CD wallets or perhaps the folio that you got with your car’s user manual and maintenance schedule. Inside, you get a power strip down the spine that can then be used to charge all sorts of doo-dahs.
There are five ports in all: iPhone/iPod, mini-USB, micro-USB, Samsung, and LG. I don’t know how much mileage you’ll get out of those last two unless you happen to have a Korean cell phone, but this is still quite the handy little solution. Slip it into your messenger bag and keep everything in one place.
The Charge4All Charge Folio retails for a touch under $50, so it’s not the most expensive cell phone charger on the block either.

Around the same time that the first Apple iPhone hit the scene, we were also treated to the HTC Touch. Powered by Windows Mobile, it looked like a via

Around the same time that the first Apple iPhone hit the scene, we were also treated to the HTC Touch. Powered by Windows Mobile, it looked like a viable alternative to the handset coming out of Cupertino, but it ultimately ended up playing second or even third fiddle. Well, it seems like it’s back again.
I don’t see any official confirmation one way or the other, but I’d say that the “new” T-Mobile Tap looks a heck of a lot like the original HTC Touch. You get a very similar touchscreen display and the hardware-based buttons underneath look very similar as well.
It’s possible that this is truly a new phone, more or less, since I do not think that this phone is running on Windows Mobile 5. Instead, it seems to be loaded with a regular “dumbphone” or “feature phone” operating system instead.
Specs include a 2-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, web browser, media player, GPS, and that large touchscreen. The T-Mobile Tap will be made available in berry and midnight blue in time for the holiday shopping season.

Fido Reaches Back to 2005 to Find Nokia 6682

You know that legislation that was passed requiring wireless carriers in Canada to provide at least one phone in their lineup that is well-suited for the visually impaired? Whereas big brother Rogers gets the Nokia E71 for this purpose, it seems that the poor visually-impaired dog is getting something much, much older.
To satisfy the requirements laid out by the government, Fido has decided to launch the “all new” Nokia 6682. Does this phone look familiar to you? It should, because the Nokia 6682 was initially released way back in 2005 and has since been discontinued. I guess Fido found some old stock, because it is back.
Just like the modified Nokia E71 for Rogers, the Nokia 6682 for Fido will come preloaded with TALKS, an application that changes text messages and other on-screen content into speech. This is supposed to help people who have trouble seeing

AT&T Garmin nuvifone G60 Gets Reviewed

This phone has taken far too long to reach the market and it’s already lost some of that initial shine even before it hit store shelves. Even so, it seems that the Garmin nuvifone G60 was worth the wait, because Mobileburn is saying that it could offer the best navigation experience on a cell phone today.
You get all the usual bells and whistles associated with most touchscreen smartphones these days, so you can expect to get a camera, mobile web access, a virtual QWERTY keyboard with predictive text, and so on. But what about the navigation?
Since we are coming from GPS-centric Garmin, we should expect the best turn-by-turn GPS navigation experience on a cell phone and it seems that Garmin has delivered on that front. Just as the iPhone was originally seen as a cool iPod and not so big on the “phone” side, the Garmin nuvifone suffers a similar fate.
Mobileburn concludes that it is a great GPS device, but only an “OK” phone. The rest of the features and specs run par for the course, for the most part, and that makes it hard to justify the higher price point. The browsing speeds are slow, the battery life is short, and there’s no car charger included.
Hope on over through the source link below to read the full review.

Samsung Giorgio Armani with Windows Mobile 6.5

What do you get when you borrow some styling inspiration from the Nokia N97 mini and a little more inspiration for the HTC Touch Pro 2? What if you were to add in a huge dash of prestigious class and slap on a clothing label? It seems you end up with the new Giorgio Armani phone from Samsung.
This isn’t the first time that Samsung and Armani have teamed up to produce a premium handset, so the naming scheme could prove to be a little confusing. The design style of the smartphone will also make you do a double-take too.
Powered by Windows Mobile 6.5, the Samsung Giorgio Armani smartphone gets a large 3.56-inch OLED display, a powerful 5-megapixel camera, a full QWERTY keyboard, 8GB of internal memory, WiFi, and GPS. You’ll also notice that the display goes on a tilt, just like the AT&T Tilt 2 and Nokia N97.
Naturally, there’s a premium to go with that Armani branding. On the bright side, there are no Swarovski crystals to jack up the price even further, but do expect to drop over $1000 to get your hands on this Beverly Hills-worthy handset.

Palm US announces Pixi while UK waits for Pre

The second Palm webOS device has been announced Stateside, while we still wait for O2 to get the Pre into stores. The Pixi is a more traditional 'candybar' style phone with QWERTY keyboard.
The second webOS device is mostly a redesigned form factor, but Palm has added some new features, such as integration of LinkedIn and Yahoo! to complement existing services like Facebook.
The rubberized, scratch resistant, back cover is changeable - and a range of limited-edition covers will be available following the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York from the 10-17th September.
Palm has made it clear that they're not giving any indication of a release in Europe yet, but they do plan to do so and will announce more details later.

T-Mobile plan huge non-EU roaming price hikes

At the same time as everyone was talking about the proposed merger/joint venture between T-Mobile and Orange, news was coming out about a series of eye-watering price hikes for users roaming outside the EU, taking effect in late October.
With the EU introducing price capping on voice, text and data charges when roaming within member states, What Mobile has become used to the fact that roaming costs outside the EU are usually increased to compensate.
T-Mobile has now jumped on the price-increase bandwagon, with new costs that take effect from the 26th of October.
Calls made or received in Andorra, Faroe Islands or Switzerland will rise from 55p to £1 per minute.
USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand will rise from between 55-75p per minute to a new cost of £1.20 per minute.
Other countries, with charges ranging from £1.30-£1.40 per minute will rise to £1.50 per minute.

Motorola launches DEXT Android phone with MOTOBLUR

Motorola is back - and it's Android that is likely to save the day। The first handset (of four, if all the rumours on the Internet are true) also sees the launch of MOTOBLUR - a service that will collect content from a range of online services, including Facebook and Twitter, seamlessly and instantly।

This is it - the DEXT (released in the USA tonight as the Cliq). It's the first Android handset from Motorola, and could well get the handset manufacturer out of the wilderness. No, scratch that, WILL get them out of the wilderness.
The stylish looking device has an impressive spec, from the integrated QWERTY keyboard to the 5-megapixel autofocus camera first seen on the ZN5 cameraphone. There's also the usual array of features, like GPS, Wi-Fi and 3G.
But the most interesting aspect, and one that wasn't widely reported before the launch, is MOTOBLUR. The concept is simple enough, and isn't totally unique, but the video below shows how easy it is to collect content from a range of online services and social networking sites - without having to worry about who used what.
Like the INQ Mobile handsets, the DEXT will also keep contacts updated with status updates and profile pictures, and collect details from a range of sources - including your personal and private emails. Naturally, the DEXT is geared up to work with any, or all, of the Google services on offer; mail, maps, chat etc.
The DEXT will be launching exclusively in the UK on Orange, with exact details on availability and pricing to be revealed at Motorola's UK event on the 15th September. We will be there and you'll be able to read more on the website then - and in the next issue of the magazine on sale 1st October.

LG announces first Android phone; LG GW620

LG has announced its first Android device, an upgraded handset based on the design of the, non-Android, LG GW520. It will be released in Q4 of 2009.
Like the GW520, the GW620 is aimed primarily at first-time smartphone customers. It is one of many Android powered devices LG intends to bring to market throughout 2010.
The phone has a 3-inch touchscreen with slide-out QWERTY keyboard. The rest of the specs are due to be announced soon - but we suspect that they will match, or improve upon, the specs of the non-smartphone GW520 on which it is based

Basic4ppc Celebrates 1 Million Downloads!!

Erel Uziel founder and CEO of Basic4ppc said: We are glad the hard work is finally paying off. Now that Microsoft is due to launch the mobile market place this autumn. Basic4ppc will be an ideal tool for developers and small businesses who want to sell their original application online. Uziel also mentioned that this is due to the fact that the distribution of applications developed in Basic4ppc environment is royalty free without any restrictions."

Ruggedized Windows Mobile devices

One of the major advantages of Windows Mobile as a technology platform is the large amount of choice it affords in terms of both software and hardware options. Microsoft has actively fostered a lively ecosystem of developers, system integrators, chip manufacturers, device manufacturers, mobile operators, and others to meet the specific goals of end-users.

Mobile 4 Dev.

There are nearly four billion mobile subscribers, more than half the world's population. New phones cost as little as USD$20 and require very little education or technical literacy to operate. And with users in developing countries now outnumbering those in the developed countries, development practitioners and social entrepreneurs are beginning to leverage the power of mobile technology to reach development objectives. Sophisticated devices and data services remain most accessible in the wealthiest countries, but usage in the developing world is significantly altering business and social behaviors around the world.

Nokia challenges RIM..

Microsoft Business Division President Stephen Elop told reporters that Nokia is currently the world's largest smartphone manufacturer with 200 million global customers.

"Today's announcement will enable us to expand Microsoft Office Mobile to Nokia smartphone owners worldwide and allow them to collaborate on Office documents from anywhere, as part of our strategy to provide the best productivity experience across the PC, phone and browser," said Elop.

Panasonic, NEC unveil 9 Linux phoness

The focus of the cellphone market has been shifting to software development since Google Inc and Apple Inc entered the mobile market in the past two years, with phone vendors and operators increasingly looking for open source alternatives such as LiMo to cut costs.

The market for software platforms on cellphones is led by Nokia's Symbian operating system, but it has lost much ground over the last year to Apple and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd.

Skype to hit mobile phones this year

At the Voice On the Net (VON) conference in Toronto, Skype Technologies co-founder and CEO Niklas Zennstrom reported that a mobile version of Skype will be available this year.

Skype is a free global telephony application that allows for VoIP communications, it currently runs on Mac OSX, Windows and Pocket PC, Skype plans to release a version for Embedded Linux, Symbian or Windows Mobile devices later this year.

“We will encourage hardware manufacturers to deploy Skype on their devices.” said Zennstrom. SkypeMobile for mobile devices (our unofficial name for the new Skype) will be targeted to hardware manufacturers for integration into new dual-mode (GPRS + WiFi) mobile devices once made available to carriers. Our guess is that whichever manufacturer will adopt Skype first is the platform SkypeMobile will be released for.

AT&T Getting Touch Pro2 as HTC Tilt 2

It seems like everyone wants an invite to this party, because just about everyone is picking up some variation on this possibly popular smartphone. You may already know about this Windows Mobile handset as the HTC Touch Pro2 and how it follows up on the HTC Touch Pro.

Vodafone Selling BlackBerry Curve 8520 for Free

Want to get your hands on the hottest new smartphone coming out of Waterloo, Ontario? Want to try your hand at that new trackpad that replaces the iconic trackball? Want to do it for free? Vodafone sure thinks so and that’s why it’s ready to give you the BlackBerry 8520 for the whopping price of free.

We had already known that Vodafone UK would be picking up this new BlackBerry, but we didn’t know too much about pricing. Over the weekend, the BlackBerry 8520 hit the retail channels for Vodafone and it came with a very pleasant surprised for cash-strapped smartphone enthusiasts.

There is a catch, of course, because it’s not like they’re just throwing boxes of these things into the crowd and hoping that the recipients sign up for a plan with them. Instead, you’ll need to waltz over to a Vodafone UK location and sign up for a monthly plan of at least 25 GBP.

Apple MacBook Touch Tablet PC with 3G Wireless Broadband?

Even though the team in Cupertino is keeping pretty tight-lipped about the possibilities of a large iPod touch, we’re still hearing all sorts of rumors about the so-called MacBook Touch. To further add to our interest, we are now hearing that it’ll come with 3G data connectivity for true wireless freedom.
As you may recall, the device would likely slot somewhere between the iPod touch and the MacBook, both in terms of size and price. That’s why so many people are saying that it will likely function more like a large iPod touch than a small tablet PC.
However, Munster is saying that this new device will include a 3G cellular modem, allowing you to surf the web anywhere you happen to have a cellular connection. This goes hand-in-hand with the official iPhone tethering solution that is now available

Street Fighter IV Cell Phone Strap = Talking Arcade Stick

It’s no secret that I’m a pretty big fan of fighting games and I’ve been playing quite a bit of Street Fighter IV. I have a t-shirt to express my enthusiasm already, but this new cell phone charm from Japan could be going a little too far.

Many cell phone users, particularly from Asia, seem to have a thing for having cell phone charms dangle from their handsets, but most of these are of a manageable size. Such does not appear to be the case with this Hadouken-inspired unit, because it’s a mini arcade stick. And it’s functional.

You won’t be able to plug in this Street Fighter IV Real Voice mini joystick into your Xbox 360 for some Street Fighter action, but you can make it sound like you are. If you pick up the Ryu edition, for instance, and complete the fireball motion on this joystick, it’ll say, “Hadouken.” Do the uppercut and it’ll say, “Shoryuken.” Not even kidding.

In addition to the Ryu edition as shown, which only has one punch and one kick button but it has an eight-way joystick, you can also choose from versions featuring Ken, Dhalsim, and Chun-Li. Yup, you can pull off Yoga Flames and Spinning Bird Kicks too.

Pictures and Specs of Dell Android Smartphone

We’ve been hearing about the very real possibility of a Dell smartphone powered by Google Android for a while, but now we’re starting to see some real hard evidence that this phone is indeed in the works and it could be ready for primetime sooner rather than later.

The Smaller Nokia N97 That Could Have Been

Even before it was officially released, the Nokia N97 was widely applauded as being a superphone, boasting features that set it at the top of the smartphone range. However, it did suffer from a bulk problem… that Nokia knew about.

Verizon Getting Android Via Motorola Sholes/Shules?

You know how Motorola is hurting? You know how Verizon is seriously lacking in the Google Android department? It seems that both of these concerns will soon be addressed with the upcoming Motorola Sholes smartphone.

Smartphones from Verizon Point to New Hotness

While there are some signs that the economy might be turning itself around, many people are still struggling with the current financial situation. Verizon is apparently offering some recession relief by dropping the price on “almost all existing smartphones”. That sounds like a deal to me

Facebook Profile Pictures from Nintendo DSi

You know how the iPod touch is supposed to be so much more than a mere media player? The same thing can be said about the Nintendo DSi, apparently, because Nintendo doesn’t want it to be “just” a portable gaming console

Mobile-Friendly Secondary USB Monitor (Mimo 710-S)

For people who are accustomed to a dual monitor configuration, going on the road with a regular laptop can be an exercise in frustration. The Nanovision Mimo line aims to address this concern by providing a secondary monitor that can run completely from a single USB connection, power and all

HTC Hero

With the HTC Hero, personalisation lets you create a phone that is just right for you.
Sporting a 3.2 inch touchscreen display, the Hero runs on the latest version of the Android operating system

Samsung Propel Graduates to Propel Pro with Windows Mobile

The original Samsung Propel for AT&T was launched late last year, granting full QWERTY keyboards to people who wanted a smaller slider phone. This was a standard feature phone, but what about people who wanted just a little more?
Stepping it up just a notch is the new Samsung Propel Pro from AT&T. It's like the original Propel, except this one comes powered by Windows Mobile. In this way, the Propel Pro is easily one of the more compact smartphones that we have seen in some time.
The build quality and choice of materials also appear to be improved, furthering the "Pro" moniker. The slide-out QWERTY keyboard is backed up by an optical joystick, metallic accents, and Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard.
The hope is that AT&T and Samsung will have something for us at Mobile World Congress next month, but for now, no official information has been released. Stay tuned.

Virgin Mobile Gets Helio Ocean 2 in Time for V-Day

With Virgin Mobile's relatively recent acquisition of Helio, many of us were left wondering when the MVNO would bring the highly anticipated Helio Ocean 2 into the fray. Well, the wait is about to end.
The first Helio Ocean offered quite the unique three-layered design. Slide it out vertically and you got a numeric keypad. Slide it out horizontally and you got a QWERTY keyboard. That's pretty neat. The Helio Ocean 2 for Virgin Mobile continues with this tradition and it should hit the usual channels on February 12th. That gives you a solid day or two to get it for your honey in time for Valentine's Day. Look! It even comes with reddish accents!
You may also recall that the Helio Ocean 2 and Virgin Mobile would be one of the official sponsors of Britney Spears' next tour, which kicks off on March 3rd. In this way, the Ocean 2 will be available a full three weeks before Britney hits that baby one more time. Or something.
In terms of features, you get a 2.6-inch QVGA display, optical sensor for touchpad navigation, dual slider design, 2GB internal memory, microSD slot, 2-megapixel camera with video and geotagging, full HTML tabbed browsing, threaded text messages, ad full access to all Helio services like Buddy Beacon and HelioUP.

OnPar Golfer GPS Handheld with iPhone Flair

For most people, GPS devices are largely reserved for getting around town and navigating the highways to grandma's house. For the outdoorsy types, there are GPS devices that will ensure you don't get lost in the middle of the woods. And then there are GPS devices for the avid golfers in the audience.
Finding GPS devices for golfers is nothing new, but the new OnPar GPS could be one of the most aesthetically pleasing to date. That's because it borrows quite a bit from the iPhone in terms of style.
Featuring a large 3.5" touchscreen display, the OnPar GPS device for golfers features a menu that is not unlike that on the iPhone, letting you navigate to its different functions and applications. From there, you can see a better view of the current hole on the current golf course, determine distance to pin, work out your score, and so on.
The dynamic hole layout display is probably the most feature that will see the most play, but you can also use OnPar to determine how far away you are from the drink, a sand trap, or other hazards too. OnPar can store info for up to 300 courses to boot.
Pricing for the OnPar has not been announced, but specialty stores will start stocking his device in early February.

Moto i465: The First Moto iDEN Cell Phone with QWERTY

Everyone seems to be falling in love with QWERTY phones these days, no longer restricting the feature to the realm of corporate and business users. Teenagers want the QWERTY for ease of text messaging, for example. Even though smartphones and messaging phones have been doing the QWERTY dance for a while now, it's interesting to see that Motorola hasn't produced a QWERTY phone with iDEN yet. That has now changed.
This may have been a long time coming and the handset may be far from the prettiest thing in the world, but the i465 is the first ever iDEN phone from Motorola with a full QWERTY keyboard. As with most other iDEN phones, the Motorola i465 is a slightly ruggedized number that is well suited for industrial and outdoor applications.
Aside from the QWERTY keyboard, the Motorola i465 doesn't bring too much to the table. You don't get Windows Mobile, because this is not a smartphone. It's a "feature" phone. Rounding out the feature set are a VGA camera, Bluetooth, and push-to-talk.

General Mobile DSTL1 Android Phone Looks Hot, Rocks Double SIM

When the T-Mobile G1 finally launched last year, most people weren't terribly excited about the hardware, but the prospects of the Google Android software made for a promising proposition. As the platform continues to mature and more manufacturers start making smartphones using its framework, we could have more interesting handsets on our hands.
One of the newest Google Android-powered smartphones to enter the fray is the General Mobile DSTL1. You may not have ever heard of General Mobile, but this handset is simply gorgeous and cannot be ignored. It features a 3-inch Sharp touchscreen, double SIM slots for dual calling, and an utterly sleek appearance.
The angled corners are complemented by black glass, chrome accents, and brilliant black plastic. The design is familiar, looking sort of like an HTC Touch Diamond, but with a huge dash of extra class.
In terms of features, you get a Marvell PXA 310 (624MHz) processor running the show, tri-band GSM, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, FM radio, 4GB of internal memory, card slot, 5-megapixel autofocus camera (Sharp), and video chat. There's not explicit mention of 3G, but you've got to figure that's in there too.
The General Mobile DSTL1 Android Phone should be on display at Mobile World Congress (formerly 3GSM) next month.

HTC Touch Pro Getting Mozilla Fennec (Firefox Mobile) Next Week

While I have largely migrated to Google Chrome as my primary web browser on my computer, I did use Mozilla Firefox for the longest time. I liked it a lot more than, say, Internet Explorer. Just as you have an abundance of choices on your laptop for web browsers, the same can be said about the mobile environment. It's about to get a little more crowded with the pending release of Fennec, a browser you may know better as Firefox Mobile.
Developed by Mozilla, Firefox Mobile is supposed to bring the same kind of web browsing experience you get on your desktop over to the Windows Mobile realm of a smartphone. Carrying the codename of Fennec, Firefox Mobile will be ready to launch for the HTC Touch Pro as early as next week. This comes directly from the team at Mozilla, so this proposed release date carries some weight.
Firefox Mobile is already in Alpha 2 status, so it won't be all that long before they launch the first beta version of the mobile web browser. I can't say for sure, but I'm thinking that this will be an improvement over the mobile version of IE. A lot of Windows Mobile people are currently using Opera, but they hop to the foxy side with this release.
The initial release, as mentioned, will be the HTC Touch Pro, but it won't be long before the guys at xda-developers port the first Firefox Mobile beta to other HTC smartphones. From there, I'd imagine that some guys would work on sending Firefox Mobile to more WinMo phones too.

Sony PSP Hits the Carnival Dressed Up in Clown Colors

What is it that you desire the most from an updated Sony PlayStation Portable? Clearly, Sony is in touch with our desires, because here are four new models of the PSP dressed up in exuberant bright colors. Yes, that's what we want. More colors.
Over in the land of Japan, we find the new Carnival Colors line of the PSP. The Radiant Red and Vibrant Blue renditions of the handheld will start shipping on March 5th, whereas the Bright Yellow and Spirited Green editions hit Japanese retailers on March 19th. No matter the color, a new brightly-painted PSP will run you 19,800 Yen (about $220).
What else do you get with the Carnival Colors PSP? Is there a second analog stick? A better web browser? A slimmer design? Nope, none of those. You get an exceptionally loud paint job that'll save you the trouble of shipping a regular PSP to Colorware or something. Yay?
On a side note, Sony will continue to sell extended life battery covers for each of these Carnival Colors PSP systems, so at least you can keep gaming for a slightly longer period of time. The batteries are discontinued in the United States.

MacBook Mini Netbook Concept Features Tri-Fold Design

Considering how much talk there is about a Apple netbook of some kind, I really think that the guys in Cupertino should give this some serious thought. They have gone on the record that that they have no current interest in the netbook market, but they are keeping an eye on it. The introduction of the Sony VAIO P could pave the way toward a premium netbook from Apple, but for now, it's a pipe-dream for Apple enthusiasts.
What would a MacBook Nano or a MacBook Mini look like anyhow? You know Apple would bring something new to the table and this latest concept rendering offers us a glimpse into what is possible. Whereas all other netbooks take on the "mini-laptop" appearance, this MacBook Mini is a tri-fold.
The ultra-wide display and overall layout is similar to the Sony VAIO Pocket, but the extra flip-out portion is what makes this concept so interesting. You've got a 10-inch widescreen on one flap, the keyboard on another flap, and a large multi-touch trackpad on the third flap.
When you're only doing some web surfing and don't intend on typing anything, you can rely solely on the trackpad. This is almost as ridiculous as the MacBook Wheel, but at least you can have the regular keyboard when you need it.

Video: iPhone Gets Bluetooth File Transfers via iBluetooth

The Apple iPhone is one of the hottest handsets on the market today and while it brings a lot of great things to the table, it's also lacking in several areas as well. We're still looking for official ways to record videos and cut-and-paste. In the meantime, we turn to the developer community for support.
Something that is strangely missing from the iPhone is the ability to transfer files over a Bluetooth connection. That shortcoming has been overcome with the arrival of iBluetooth, a third-party app that lets beam that song or picture to your fellow Bluetooth-equipped smartphone user.
iBluetooth is in no way endorsed or affiliated with Apple itself and you can't even get this useful application through the regular Apple App Store. Instead, you'll first need to have a jailbroken iPhone and then you can find iBluetooth through the iSpazio repository on Cydia. It's a bit of a workaround, but at least it works.
Embedded below is a brief video of iBluetooth in action. I really do find it strange that despite its relatively cutting-edge inclinations, the iPhone is lacking in some basics like stereo Bluetooth, video recording, and Bluetooth object exchange.

Feature - Choosing My Next Smartphone

I've been fighting this battle for far too long and it's about time I come to some kind of decision. I don't know where I'll turn, but I really want to buy myslf a new smartphone. After migrating over from a conventional phone to a smartphone, there really is no turning back. The simple functionality of a dumbphone just doesn't cut the mustard for me.
Some of the Top Contenders
Although the Apple fanatics will hate me for saying this, I've already decided that I'm not going to even consider the iPhone 3G. This isn't to say that I won't have some sort of iPhone in the future, but the current incarnation isn't really what I want.
In terms of criteria, I don't think I'm being terribly picky, but this could be the source of my indecision. For frame of reference, I'm currently using an ancient T-Mobile MDA Vario (HTC Wizard) running on Windows Mobile 5. Yes, I'm that old school and it's time for an upgrade. I'd prefer to keep a touchscreen around, though that's not really a requirement. I'm open to different operating systems, but I cannot live without a hardware QWERTY keyboard. I also need a good "Today" screen.
Regarding preferences, I'd like a decent resolution camera that can do video, an adequate email client, a decent web browser, and expandable memory. I'm willing to budge on any of these if other features win me over. Let's see who is currently sitting at the top of the heap.